Safe standing to be trialled at St James’ Park next season

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Newcastle United fans were recently asked by the club if they’d be in favour of the return of a standing area at St James’ Park.

Safe standing areas are being trialled at grounds up and down the country and now St James’ Park is set to be one of those venues with safe standing areas, at least for a short while from the start of the 2023/24 season.

This morning the club announced that 1800 spaces for standing fans will be introduced next season.

St James’ Park will have two standing sections next season

The statement read: “Newcastle United can announce that licensed standing – commonly known as ‘safe standing’ – will be introduced at St. James’ Park as part of an initial trial period at the start of the 2023/24 season.

A designated licensed standing section with space for approximately 1,800 home supporters will be installed in the South East Corner of the stadium and will include the lower section of block B and the upper sections of blocks C, D, E and F.

A similar provision will also be installed for visiting supporters on Level 7 of the Leazes End.

The trial follows a supporter consultation process, during which more than 4,000 fans responded to an online survey – with 70 fans attending a subsequent working group session at St. James’ Park to provide more detailed feedback.

Of those surveyed online, 75 per cent were in favour of licensed standing being introduced at St. James’ Park – with the South East Corner and Gallowgate End identified as the preferred location by more than 70 per cent of respondents.

The club has also continued to monitor existing trials at other stadiums in England, with licensed standing areas successfully installed and safely managed at Wembley and a number of Premier League grounds with the support of the Sports Ground Safety Authority (SGSA).”

It’s great to see standing coming back to football grounds

Premier League grounds have been all-seater stadiums since 1994 when standing was outlawed for safety concerns, but now after successful trials, terraces are making a comeback.

The feeling is that standing will encourage fans to make more noise – if you’ve ever been to an away game you know that sitting is a rarity as fans tend to stay standing for the duration of the game so they can belt out their favourite chants to drown out the home fans.

The announcement doesn’t state for how many games the trial will last or what the next steps would be if everything is successful.

However, it’s going to be interesting to see what difference, if any, it makes to the already electric St James’ Park atmosphere next term.